Pieces Of Me
by Miss Higher Power
Summary: Rachel needs to get over her ex-husband, and Puck is exactly the person to help her do it.


"Rachel!" The pounding on the door made Rachel stop. Why couldn't Santana just leave her alone? "I know you're in there. I can hear your depressed lesbian music playing."

Rachel put her book down, got out of bed and padded to the door. She slowly opened it a crack to peer out at her best friend.

"Chica, you don't have to spend all your time locked in there, you know."

"I'm just reading and listening to music. I know you have company." Santana gave a short laugh.

"It's not fucking company. It's Puck."

"Oh, say hello to Noah for me."

"Come out and say it yourself, bitch." Santana gave her a look that told her she wasn't going to win. Rachel was going to try anyway.

"I'm not really dressed for company."

"Oh, god. Would you remove the stick from your ass already? Just change and get your hot ass out here. We got Chinese."

Santana turned and walked down the hall, effectively ending the conversation.

Rachel just sighed and closed the door, trying to decide what to put on.

* * *

><p>"It's bad, isn't it?" Puck asks as Santana comes back into the living room.<p>

"No shit, Sherlock." She says bitingly.

"How long's it been?"

"Over a year, but the divorce finalized last week." Santana says before taking a sip of her beer. "I wanna kill that fucking asshole."

"I never liked him."

"God, thank you! I knew I couldn't be the only one. Why didn't you ever say anything, you fucker?" Santana punches him in the shoulder for emphasis.

"Ow! Fuck, that hurt. You on steroids, you crazy bitch?" Puck rubs his arm where Santana punched him. Santana glares and goes to punch him again, but he dodges her. "You're her best friend. I figured if you didn't have a problem with him, he must be okay."

"Yeah, well, she was in love with him. I couldn't say anything." She looks down the hall to make sure Rachel isn't coming. "The worst part is that she's still in love with the rat bastard. She's still wearing her rings. She still calls herself Rachel Devlin. She got a huge settlement in the divorce, but she's not making a move to find her own place. I totally get it, and frankly, I'd rather she's here so I can keep an eye on her."

"It takes a while to get over someone."

"I'm not completely heartless, but this just destroyed her. She had no idea he was playing around, and he always told her he didn't want kids. Before they got married, he suggested she get her tubes tied."

"You're fucking kidding me!" Puck practically chokes on his beer.

"No. Thank god she didn't. When he told her that he'd gotten that fake, blonde theatre whore pregnant, she thought they could still work it out. She would've loved that kid. That's what kills me."

"It kills me that she gave that fucker any time at all. She deserves so much better than that."

"Shut up!" Santana whispers. Puck gives her a confused look. "She's coming. Start talking about something else."

"So, uh, we told him that it couldn't be done by Friday…"

"I know you two were talking about me." Puck at least has the decency to look sheepish. Santana just shrugs her shoulder.

"Hey, Rach." Puck says, standing from the couch.

"Hi, Noah." Puck pulls Rachel into a bear hug, lifting her so her feet don't touch the ground. Rachel giggles softly.

"How you doing?"

"Messy divorce and broken heart notwithstanding, not bad. Thank you for asking. How are you? How's your family? I haven't seen you in ages."

"Pretty good. Glad to be outta L.A. honestly. I fucking hated it there." Rachel laughs, the kind of laugh Santana hasn't heard since the day Rachel showed up on her doorstep bawling her eyes out. "Mom got promoted to Head of Nursing at Westwood. So she's not doing the nightshift anymore, which she loves. And Sarah's graduating this year."

"Oh, that makes me feel so old."

"I know, I feel like a fucking geriatric."

Santana watches Puck and Rachel all night with a glint in her eye. The way they both lit up when they saw each other, how they never moved more than a foot from each other, how happy Rachel seems, leads Santana to one conclusion. Rachel needs to get over her asshat of an ex-husband, and Puck is exactly the person to help her do it.

* * *

><p>Santana knows she has to start slowly. This is going to take planning and creativity. She can totally pull this off. She's not her firm's most promising young associate for nothing.<p>

She starts by inviting Puck over all the time, at least twice a week, more if their schedules allow. She knows that Rachel will know something's up if she forces them together.

It's not hard to convince Puck to come over. He doesn't really know anyone in the city, and he's always had a soft spot for Rachel. He's so easy to manipulate.

So every movie night, game night, and experimental meal they have, Santana makes sure that Puck is invited over.

It works like a charm. Rachel just generally seems happier. She's not going to ruin that. She'll make her next move, but if it's not well received she'll back off.

She keeps that up for almost a month before she ups the ante.

Santana invites Puck over for a movie marathon the night before she's scheduled to attend a major deposition. She's almost certain that she'll have to work late to prepare. Even if she doesn't, it's not like the partners are going to frown on extra billable hours. Please!

* * *

><p>Rachel is just checking on her famous lasagna when the phone rings.<p>

"Hello?"

"Hey, babe. It's me."

"Hi. Do you think Noah would prefer a Caesar salad or a spinach salad?"

"Uh, I don't really give a fuck. Listen, I have to work late."

"Santana!"

"What? I have a deposition tomorrow. I have to prep."

"And you didn't know you had a deposition when you invited Noah over?"

"I thought I'd be prepped."

"Well," Rachel sighs, "I guess I'll just tell him we have to reschedule."

"You can't spend time with him?"

"He's not going to want to waste his whole night if you're not here."

"I'm not so sure." The sound of the buzzer covers Santana's last comment.

"Santana, I have to go. He's here." Rachel hangs up the phone and calls down to have the doorman let Noah up.

Rachel quickly takes the lasagna out of the oven, finishing just as Noah knocks on the door.

"Okay, whatever you're making smells fucking amazing." Noah tells her as she opens the door.

"Thank you." Rachel doesn't move out of the doorway.

"You gonna let me in or do I have to eat in the hallway?"

"Santana's not here." She tells him.

"Okaaay." Rachel still doesn't move. "Are you not allowed to have boys over without supervision?"

"Don't be ridiculous. I just assumed…" Rachel trails off.

"Just assumed what? That I wouldn't want to spend time with you?" When Rachel doesn't answer, Noah continues. "Fuck, Rach. I'm your friend, too. We can hang out without the devil. Unless you're worried that you're not going to be able to keep your hands off my hot bod."

"Oh my god." Rachel bursts into laughter as she opens the door to let Noah in. "I'll try to control myself."

"Too bad." He says as he looks her up and down.

As she heads back into the kitchen, she's not sure why she's blushing.

* * *

><p>Over the next few weeks, Santana is very busy at work. She really is busy. She has a major trial coming up that is taking almost all of her time. The fact that this helps her plan along is a bonus.<p>

Rachel didn't seem mad at her at all. And she and Noah are spending time together. If she wasn't scheming behind their backs, she might be hurt that they've actually stopped including her in their plans.

Honestly, she's just thinking this is a lot fucking easier than she thought it was gonna be.

* * *

><p>He and Rachel have been spending a lot of time together.<p>

Santana's been a workaholic, which Rachel says is normal because she's trying to make partner. And once he convinced Rachel that it's not, like, a hardship to spend time with her, they'd started having a lot of fun. Serious fun.

They've been bowling, mini golfing, and skating. Rachel's been introducing him to the best restaurants, coffee shops, and bars in town.

When he finally got his bike, Rachel went totally nuts. It turns out she'd always wanted to go for a ride on a motorcycle. So they went out for a short drive and now those drives are getting longer and longer.

Last Saturday they spent the entire day in FAO Schwarz. She was looking for a gift for her cousin's new baby, and he had her laughing hysterically the entire day. They didn't even realize that they'd been in there so long.

And he's starting to feel things.

Ever since their failed attempt at romance in high school, he's liked Rachel. They were totally mismatched in high school and never would've worked in a million years. And it's not like he's been carrying a fucking torch for her or anything, but she's been a good friend.

And he knows he's playing with fire. She's still broken, and he thinks he's helping her heal, but he doesn't want to push her. The last thing he wants to do is hurt her anymore.

Besides, Santana will rip his balls out, shred them, sprinkle them over her cereal and eat them for breakfast if he hurts Rachel. She's insanely protective of Rachel.

But he's not going to stop spending time with Rachel. He's just going to be careful.

* * *

><p>"So, one of my co-workers is playing a set at the Red Door on Saturday. You wanna go?"<p>

"Hello, to you to Noah."

"Hi, whatever. You wanna fucking go or not?" He asks impatiently.

"What time?" Rachel asks.

"You got other plans? We both know you spend all your time with me. 'Cause I'm so awesome."

"No, I spend all my time with you because we're both pathetic and don't want to bring others down."

"Ouch! And here I thought you actually liked me."

"Of course I do, Noah." She says with a laugh. "We have an open house at the school on Saturday. I'm not finished until 4:30."

"Oh, cool. Tim's on at 8:30. I think you'll be good."

"Then I would love to."

* * *

><p>The Red Door is an interesting place. It's not quite a coffee shop, not quite a bar. It's also by invitation only. You have to be on the guest list. Rachel knows the right people and travels in the musical circles, so she's been a few times. But each time presents the same dilemma: clothing.<p>

"Go with the black." Santana tells her. "It's classic. I can't believe that fucker didn't invite me. I love the Red Door."

Rachel sweeps her eyes over the file boxes, books and notes scattered all over Santana's bedroom.

"The next time someone good is playing, I'll get Jan to put us on the list." Rachel tells Santana as she pulls off the green dress she's currently wearing and pulls on the black dress.

"Perfect. Wear the gold bangles and the streamer earrings. They're in the bottom tray." Santana points to the jewelry chest on her dresser.

"Are you sure you don't mind lending these to me?" Rachel asks as she moves to the dresser.

"Please. Jewelry's meant to be fucking worn. At the rate I'm going, I'm never going to go out again."

"Just think of all the shoes you can buy once you make partner." Rachel says as she slips the earrings on.

"Manolo, Laboutin, Choo." Santana whispers as she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. "Okay. Motivation restored."

They both know it's a lie. Santana loves her job. She's finally found a place where her barbed tongue is a well appreciated gift.

"I should get going. I'm supposed to be meeting Noah in 20 minutes."

"Get outta here, bitch. Have a couple drinks for me." She calls out as Rachel leaves.

Santana really can't believe how well her little plan is working. Puck and Rachel have been nearly inseparable for the past month. On the odd occasion when she hasn't been working, the tension between them has been almost unbearable.

And Rachel talks about him all the damn time. In a way she never talked about the fucker. In a month or two, she might suggest an actual date. She wants things to really cement before she moves on to the next phase of her plan.

* * *

><p>Puck is waiting outside the Red Door when Rachel's cab pulls up. His stomach gives a funny swoop as she gets out of the car.<p>

She's so gorgeous it hurts. She's wearing this black, one-armed dress and red high heels. Her hair is shiny and straight, swinging slightly. She has simple jewelry, nothing flashy.

As fantastic as she looks, something looks off and he can't place it until they're inside giving their names.

"Noah Puckerman." He tells the host. He's quickly checked off and the guy looks to Rachel.

"Rachel Berry." She tells him. The host checks his list and frowns. It's then that the piece falls into place. Rachel's not wearing her rings.

"I'm sorry. You're not on the list."

"Oh. Sorry. Rachel Devlin?" The host takes another glance at the list and smiles.

"There you are. You're free to go in."

* * *

><p>He waits until they're seated at their table before giving Rachel a look.<p>

"It was time." She says simply. He nods and doesn't say anything more, just starts telling her about something that happened at the studio that day.

This is what she loves about Noah. He just lets her be.

In the aftermath of everything that happened when Adam…left her, she's been overwhelmed by the questions and people wanting all the details.

She suspects that Noah knows more than he lets on, but he never pushes.

Santana is the only person that knows everything. Every small detail and betrayal that led to the ultimate failure of her marriage.

Part of Rachel can't believe that she ever let this happen to herself. She can't believe that she gave up so much of what she wanted to be with him. She'll admit that she didn't have to be pushed very hard.

That's the other part of her. The part that can absolutely believe it, that is surprised that someone hadn't come along and broken her sooner, seen the gigantic self-esteem issues and pulled her apart.

That's exactly what Adam did. He played on her insecurities and ruined her. She'd thought no one else would ever love her, and she'd said yes to the first person that asked her to marry him.

It wasn't long before she was giving up auditioning and moving on to a "respectable" career as a teacher. A career which she truly loves, but she's starting to wonder if she could have made it like she'd always thought she could.

She'd given up her dream of being a mother. Adam had asked her to have her tubes tied before they got married. It was the one area where she had put her foot down. It seemed too final; there was always a chance he might change his mind. He said he wouldn't change his mind. He didn't want children. He never would.

So when Adam told her that he'd had an affair and there was a baby on the way, she'd been absolutely shattered. She thought they could still work it out, but he told her he just didn't want to have a baby with her.

She'd felt completely empty, hollowed out and raw.

But sitting here, across the table from Noah, who never fails to tell her how amazing she is or how much he values her, she's starting to feel whole again. She knows she's a long way from being ready for a relationship, but she thinks a harmless crush can't hurt.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you've never seen Home Alone. That's impossible." Noah says as he walks her down the hall to Santana's apartment. They've just been skating in Rockefeller Centre.<p>

"My dads weren't really into children's movies. We really only watched Disney cartoons or musicals when I was little."

"Okay, but you never watched it at school? We were in the same fucking class for years. I'm sure we watched it."

"I must have been sick. I have never seen it." Rachel turns to face him when they arrive at the apartment door.

"Well, we're watching it. I'll bring it over on Saturday."

"I'll look forward to it." Rachel is just about to turn and put her key in the lock, when Noah moves to kiss her cheek goodbye, just like he always does.

At the last second, she turns her head and his lips land squarely on hers. Her eyes blink once, before she gives herself in to the kiss. His hands are suddenly on her face, and she thinks this might be the best kiss she's ever had.

When he finally pulls away, she can't read the look on Noah's face. She can feel the heat creeping up her face. She blinks twice.

"I should get inside." Rachel says abruptly. She turns, unlocks the door and is inside before he can say anything.

Rachel slumps against the door.

"Oh, boy!"

* * *

><p>Puck grabs a cab outside Rachel's building. The minute he's inside he calls Artie.<p>

"I kissed Rachel."

"Awesome! You've been into her for a while now."

"No, not awesome. Fucking awful, dude. She looked like that cat from Shrek."

"Oh."

"She didn't even give me the chance to say anything. Just bolted."

"Was the kiss bad?"

"Best fucking kiss I've had since the last time I kissed her."

"That's been over 15 years, Puck."

"She's that good."

"I don't get what the problem is. She's single."

"She's been divorced like five minutes. She's just starting to get over him. And I go and do something douchey like this. She's gonna hate me."

"Maybe you should calm down. Just play it cool, man. Follow her lead."

"Good idea, bro."

"What I'm here for."

* * *

><p>Santana hears the door open and close followed by Rachel's "Oh, boy!" and her heart sinks.<p>

That stupid fucker Puckerman has done something to screw up her plan. She just knows it.

"Rach?" She calls out. Rachel drags herself into the living room and flops down in the armchair. "What's wrong?"

"I kissed Noah." Santana has to play this very carefully.

"You kissed him or he kissed you?"

"I don't know. He kissed me? Both? I don't know." Rachel covers her face with her hands.

"Was it any good?"

"Oh, god!" She can see Rachel's face turning red.

"I'll take that as a yes." Santana laughs.

"He probably thinks I'm desperate. Jumping on any little scrap of affection a man throws my way."

"You're seriously loco. He doesn't think that. I say you go for it." Rachel removes her hands from her face to glare at Santana.

"I don't need a serious relationship right now. I only got divorced two months ago. I want to be a slut for a while." Santana bursts out laughing. Once she can breathe again, which takes a while, she starts to speak.

"Oh, bullshit, Rachel. One, you're the least slutty person I know." Rachel tries to interrupt but Santana holds up her finger. "And getting drunk at my office Christmas party and sleeping with one of the articling students on the day your bastard ex-husband sends you a birth announcement does not count as slutty. Mostly because you thought that a one night stand was too slutty and slept with him again so you didn't feel so dirty. Two, Puckerman apparently woke the beast and you just want to have sex without getting your heart broken again."

Rachel looks down, so Santana knows she's on the money.

"So fuck Puck."

"I can't do that." Rachel says, scandalized.

"Sure you can. He obviously thinks you're hot. You trust him. If you're worried about getting hurt, put a time limit on it. Say six weeks. Get in, get off, get out."

"I can't. He's probably never going to want to see me again."

"When are you supposed to see him next?"

"Saturday."

"So, if he shows up, it's a sign." Rachel sort of nods and throws her face back into her hands. "Great. Now that that's decided, let's get drunk!"

As Santana moves into the kitchen to start margaritas, she just smiles to herself. Puck is fucking playing right into her hands.

* * *

><p>Puck's a fucking wreck all day Friday and Saturday. He's just waiting for her to call and tell him not to come over, that she doesn't ever want to see his face again.<p>

And when he's walking into her building on Saturday night, he's sure that she's just not going to let him up. At best. At worst he'll be subjected to an hour long Rachel Berry rant and then Santana will rip his balls out to bronze and display with her law degree.

* * *

><p>Rachel spends all day Friday nervously planning exactly what she's going to say to Noah when he comes over on Saturday. Santana has her so convinced that this is a done deal.<p>

She wakes up at 4:30 on Saturday morning in a cold panic that he's not going to show up that night.

Or that he will and tell her he just thinks of her as a friend.

* * *

><p>Puck knocks on her door. Rachel's let him into the building, but he's not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing.<p>

He waits forever for her to answer the door, the feeling in his stomach growing worse with every second. When she finally answers the door, she smiles nervously. Smiling is good. He'll take it.

He follows her inside but doesn't say anything. The silence is weird.

* * *

><p>The silence is awkward. She just has to say this. Get it out and if he thinks it's a terrible idea, he'll tell her. She'll be embarrassed, but she'll get through it.<p>

She waits until they're in the living room. He's just set the DVD on the coffee table and shrugged off his coat when she starts to speak.

"I think we should have sex."

* * *

><p>He can't have heard her right. Rachel doesn't just say things like that.<p>

"I'm…sorry?" He asks.

"I think we should have sex." Is it hot in here?

"Um…" Rachel's face has just gone an interesting shade of red. God, his heart's beating fast. Being propositioned by a hot girl has never made him feel like this.

"Oh, god. You think it's a terrible idea."

"No, no. It's not a bad idea. It's a fucking fantastic idea. It's just…the other night. You bolted."

"You caught me off guard. I haven't…" She shakes her head. "I haven't had been kissed in a very long time. I haven't had sex in a very long time."

"Okay." He pulls his shirt over his head.

"Noah!" Rachel looks scandalized. Considering she just asked him to fuck her, he's not sure what her problem is.

"What? Let's go." He moves toward her, but she backs away.

"We should talk about this." Puck rolls his eyes.

"What's to talk about? You're hot, I'm hot. You obviously want to get laid. So let's do it."

"There are rules. We have to have rules." She says, backing away from him as he advances.

"Whatever you want, baby." He finally catches her wrist and pulls her towards him. He's kissing her neck and she's obviously having trouble thinking.

"Six weeks." She says as her hands slide down his back. "We have fun for six weeks and then it's over. We go back to being friends."

"You got it, babe." He can work with six weeks. Once she gets some of the Puck lovin', she'll change her mind.

* * *

><p>Santana comes home to a trail of clothes leading from her living room to Rachel's bedroom, and there's laughter coming from behind Rachel's door.<p>

Way to go, Rachel!

She's a genius. She just needs Puck to pour on the charm over the next six weeks.

She hears another peal of laughter coming from Rachel's room.

God, she needs to get laid.

* * *

><p>For the first week, they only leave his apartment for work or food. They spend the rest of their time in bed.<p>

All Rachel's dance training has paid off. She's literally the best fuck he's ever had. If he'd known at 16 that she was hiding all this sexual talent under those weird-ass animal sweaters, he would've cleaned up his act then and there.

* * *

><p>He's a god in bed. He's made her body feel things that she's never felt before.<p>

Puck lives up to every rumour she's ever heard about him.

She might be sorry when their six weeks are up.

* * *

><p>They spend their entire second week in bed. It's the week between Christmas and New Year's and with the entire week off, there's nothing better for a couple of good looking Jews to be doing.<p>

By the third week, they've started to venture out into the world. Puck and Rachel basically go back to what they were doing before, just hanging out. Only now they go home with each other at the end of the night.

The fourth and fifth weeks are basically the same as the third week.

Going in to the sixth week, Puck decides he's not going to change anything. If Rachel wants to go back to being just friends, she has to tell him.

Six weeks turn into eight. Eight weeks turn into twelve.

And then things start to get interesting.

* * *

><p>Rachel and Puck are so sickeningly cute Santana's starting to regret pushing them together.<p>

Not really. But when they're all watching a movie together and Rachel and Puck are basically in their own little world on the couch, trading kisses and talking, all laid out on the couch, she thinks she does. Maybe she just needs to get laid.

She figures Rachel's going to start looking for her own place any day now. If only so that Rachel and Puck can fuck without being walked in on.

Those two seriously have no boundaries. She's afraid to touch anything. And if she has to see Puck's bare ass one more time, she's going to start throwing things.

But really she's just happy for Rachel, she's never seen her so happy, not in all the years she's known her.

* * *

><p>Rachel and Puck spent the last weekend watching every episode of Cake Boss from beginning to end, so this weekend they've decided to head over to Hoboken and visit Carlo's Bakery. Rachel's prepared for hours in line, but she's been craving baked goods since last weekend. She's planning to buy her body weight in baked goods.<p>

It's been unseasonably warm, so Puck's pulling his bike out of storage, and they're going to spend the day in Hoboken.

Rachel's just zipping her boots up when Santana knocks on her door.

"When's your boy getting here?"

"10:30. And he's not my boy." Rachel states as she pulls her second boot on.

"Whatever. He's totally your fucking boyfriend." Rachel stands from her bed and moves to her closet to pull out the motorcycle jacket that Puck gave her for Hanukkah.

"He's not my boyfriend. He's my friend, who happens to be a boy, who I happen to be sleeping with occasionally." Santana starts laughing madly once Rachel has finished. Rachel just glares at her.

"Oh, my god. Keep lying to yourself. He's your boyfriend, who you fuck almost every day, and who you barely spend any time apart from. The only reason you're not together right now is because he had to work last night. You're like joined at the hip or the crotch or something. I mean, your six weeks have come and gone, babe, and you're still together."

Santana knows she's hit a nerve when Rachel's face hardens.

"We're not together. We've been having fun, but it's time to move on." Rachel turns and heads for the living room.

Santana follows her out and watches her prepare her breakfast. Rachel just ignores her.

"Just remember he's crazy about you." Santana says before she heads back to her bedroom.

Rachel sets her muffin down and gazes out the window.

She really doesn't know how she got here. She should never have gotten involved in this. It was a stupid idea. It was a Santana idea, but Rachel should know better. She has to end this before he does.

* * *

><p>Puck doesn't know what the fuck is wrong with her. Rachel had been so excited about today. She'd gone on and on all week about everything she wanted to try. He'd hooked the trailer up to the back of his bike so they could bring everything back, and she's barely said two words to him.<p>

He showed up at the apartment, and Rachel had just grabbed her keys and said she was ready to go. She hadn't kissed him like she normally did and when he went to kiss her, she moved her head. So he knows something's set her off. He just doesn't know what and he doesn't know how big the fallout is going to be.

* * *

><p>Rachel is on edge the minute Noah arrives at the apartment. She doesn't know how to act or what to say. Truthfully, she shouldn't even have walked out the door with him. She should have just told him that they'd passed their six weeks, and she'd let this go on too long.<p>

But she didn't. She walked out the door with him and now she's committed to this afternoon.

* * *

><p>Puck notices that Rachel becomes less tense as the day goes on. They don't talk on the bike, but once they're in line at the bakery, he manages to get her talking about her students. And once they get close to the door, he takes her hand in his and she doesn't say a thing.<p>

* * *

><p>They're about 10 people away from the front of the bakery when she feels Noah take her hand. Rachel tenses for a second, but then the feeling of calmness and warmth that she gets from Noah seeps into her body and she forgets why she ever thought this was a bad idea. She just rests her head on his shoulder.<p>

She's being crazy. She had a minor freakout this morning, but she's fine. Santana's right. Noah likes her. If he wanted to end it, he would have done it already.

* * *

><p>"I don't think it's gonna fit." Puck jokes as he opens the trailer. He hears Rachel giggle from somewhere behind the billion boxes she's holding. God, she's adorable.<p>

"Don't be ridiculous, Noah. It's not that much." She tells him as he takes one of the boxes from her arms to load into the trailer. He can at least see her eyes now.

"Babe, my mom doesn't bake this much for her holiday party. How in the hell are you gonna eat all this? You're fuckin' tiny." As he takes the last box, she leans up to kiss his cheek.

"You'll have to help us."

"Think I can manage that."

* * *

><p>They're just pulling out of the parking lot of the little diner they stopped at when some idiot decides he's going to enter the parking lot through the wrong entrance. The one marked No Entry. The fucker turns in just as Puck is exiting and hits the trailer on his bike. Puck's main priority is keeping the bike upright and protecting Rachel.<p>

He doesn't manage to do either.

* * *

><p>"I'm so sorry." Noah tells her for what feels like the millionth time.<p>

"Noah, it wasn't your fault. It was that jerk who thinks that traffic rules don't apply to him." She squeezes his hand. He hasn't let go of her hand since the minute he realized that she was injured. "And it's probably just a sprain. The doctor will probably just tell me to wrap it and take it easy for a couple days."

"If you ever get to see a doctor. This is a fucking hospital, you'd think you wouldn't have to wait two hours to see a doctor."

"Noah, relax. Why don't you go to the cafeteria and get some coffee?"

"I'm fine."

"I meant, why don't you go to the cafeteria and get me some coffee?" He looks a bit sheepish as he jumps up.

"Sure, baby." He leans over and kisses her forehead. "Love you."

He's out of the room before she can say anything.

* * *

><p>Santana was in the middle of shopping when Puck called to tell her that he and Rachel had been in an accident. He'd sounded a bit panicked which, in turn, made her panicked.<p>

So when she arrives at the hospital to find Rachel in tears and Puck nowhere in sight, she's pissed. She immediately rushes into the curtained off area.

"Are you in a lot of pain?" Rachel nods her head and seems to be trying to get herself under control.

"I'm going to go find someone. And where the fuck is Puck?"

"Santana. I'm not crying because I'm in pain."

If Puck has left Rachel alone in the ER, his life isn't even going to be worth living.

"I'm crying because I'm so happy." All Santana can think is that they must have given her the good drugs. "Noah told me he loves me."

Finally! She knew he'd say it first.

"What'd you say?" Santana asks as she lowers herself into the chair next to Rachel's bed.

"Nothing."

"A hot guy tells you he loves you and you don't say anything? Are you fucking insane?"

"He went to get me a cup of coffee."

"And you didn't stop him? Are you fucking insane?"

"I don't think he meant to say it."

"Yeah, I did." Puck says as he strolls into the room with Rachel's coffee. "I don't say things I don't fuckin' mean. I love you."

Santana feels like she's intruding on an extremely personal moment. She slips from the room as she hears Rachel say, "I love you, too."

She'll just go harass nurses until someone agrees to see Rachel.

* * *

><p>Rachel's foot is broken, not sprained. No matter how many times she tells Noah it's not his fault, he just won't believe her.<p>

He basically moves in and only lets her out of his sight when absolutely necessary.

* * *

><p>Santana and Rachel are having a girls' night in. Puck is working overtime to finish some pop star's new album. Santana just won a major case and as a celebration has decided not to do any work all weekend. Rachel finally got her cast off earlier this week after eight weeks.<p>

When she gets home, Rachel is on the phone. Santana heads back to her room to change out of her suit. After she pulls on her yoga pants and hoodie, she goes back to the living room to find Rachel standing in the exact same spot she was before. The phone has been hung up, but Rachel looks like she's in shock.

"Who was on the phone?" She asks, afraid that something has happened to one of Rachel's dads.

"My doctor's office." Rachel says slowly. "I'm pregnant."

"Rachel!" Santana says excitedly.

She knows how much both Rachel and Puck want to be parents, and she thinks it's kinda awesome that they're going to be parents together. Plus, Santana secretly loves babies. But Rachel is still looking shocked and not really happy about this.

"Why aren't you more excited?" Rachel suddenly blinks and seems to come back to herself.

"It wasn't…we weren't…What if he doesn't…"

"Okay. I'm going to stop you right there, before you have some major Rachel flip out. Puck loves you and he's wanted to be a dad since he was 16 and Bitcherella gave away his kid. You don't have a fucking thing to worry about. Tomorrow morning you'll tell him and everything will be fine. So smile, enjoy the evening, and don't touch my margaritas."

* * *

><p>Rachel fakes her way through her night with Santana. Inside, though, she's all knots. She knows Noah loves her, but it's a huge jump from "I love you" to "We're having a baby" with just an eight week gap in between.<p>

She can't get to sleep. She just stays awake dreading his reaction.

At 4:30, she just can't take it anymore. She gets dressed and goes to Noah's apartment.

* * *

><p>Puck doesn't make it home from the recording studio until 3:30, so he's less than pleased when he's woken up at 5:00 by loud knocking at his front door.<p>

He answers the door to find Rachel standing nervously in the hallway.

"I'm pregnant." She blurts. Puck hears the words, but he's just so fucking tired that he can't process anything. He just stares at her for a couple seconds before stepping aside to let her in.

"Let's go to bed."

"Did you hear what I just said?" She asks, and he can tell she's working herself up to a major freak out.

"Rachel, I'm fucking exhausted. I didn't make it home until 3:30. You'll still be pregnant in the morning, so let's go to bed and talk about it in the morning."

Puck watches as she slips her shoes off and pulls the strap of her purse over her head and off her body.

As they get into bed, Rachel tries to stay as close to the edge of her side of the bed as she can. He's not letting her get away with that. He pulls her closer to him and kisses her shoulder blade. He feels her relax in his arms and within minutes her breathing has evened out and she's asleep.

He drifts off a few minutes later.

* * *

><p>Puck wakes at 6:30. He's probably only gotten two hours all night, but he knows he's not going back to sleep.<p>

He looks down at Rachel, still asleep in his arms, and can't stop the smile that stretches across his face. This girl, who is everything he's ever wanted, is having his baby. They're having a baby.

Puck figures that Rachel probably didn't get much sleep last night either and will probably sleep for another couple of hours. He's going to run out and get danishes and cocoa from that place she loves a few blocks away. He'll take the subway and be back before she wakes up.

He kisses her before he slips out of bed and takes a long look at her before he leaves the room.

* * *

><p>Rachel wakes up when she feels the sun on her body, and instantly, everything floods back into her mind. All the worry returns, but then she remembers Noah pulling her to him last night and pressing that kiss into her shoulder and some of the worry disappears.<p>

She stretches and realizes that she's alone in bed. Rachel checks the clock on his nightstand and realizes that it's almost 10:30. She stays completely still and listens for sounds of Noah in the apartment. When she doesn't hear anything, she goes to investigate.

She feels slightly sick when she realizes that the apartment is empty.

* * *

><p>Santana is painting her nails when she hears the front door open and close, followed shortly by Rachel's door opening and closing.<p>

She knocks on the door to find out how things went.

"You were wrong." It's all Rachel says.

Santana doesn't know what happened, but she'll fucking kill Puck if this isn't some huge misunderstanding. She grabs her phone and starts dialing Puck.

* * *

><p>Puck is watching the minutes tick by on his stupid phone that's getting zero fucking reception in this stupid fucking subway car that's currently trapped between two stations.<p>

He knows that by now Rachel has probably woken up, realized he's not there and gone back to Santana's thinking that he doesn't want this baby.

He should've taken a cab to the bakery.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you're such a fucking coward that you're not even answering your fucking phone, you bastard. You can hide all you want, but I will hunt you down." Santana says into her phone, leaving her thirteenth message for Puck. The messages are getting progressively worse the longer that Rachel is behind that door, not talking to her, probably bawling her eyes out.<p>

* * *

><p>He has 28 messages on his phone when he finally makes it above ground. Two from Rachel spaced an hour apart and 26 from Santana that are actually making him afraid of her.<p>

But not afraid enough to avoid Rachel.

* * *

><p>Rachel stopped crying an hour ago. She still feels like crying, but the tears just stopped.<p>

She knows that Santana is sitting outside her bedroom door, making threatening phone calls to Noah. It's somewhat comforting in an odd way.

She thinks she might have been asleep for a little while when she hears someone knock at the front door.

* * *

><p>"You think I'm just going to let you in here after what you did to her?" Santana glares at him with arms crossed.<p>

"It's not what you think, Santana." The desperate way he says it lets her know that it probably isn't at all what she thinks.

"Explain." She says abruptly. She'll listen, but she's not letting him in until she's satisfied.

* * *

><p>Rachel can hear Noah's voice in the hallway, so she gets out of bed and creeps closer to the door. She sits on the floor with her back against her dresser and her ear pressed to the crack in the door and listens to Noah's explanation about the bakery and the broken down train.<p>

She opens the door and goes into the hallway to find Santana standing guard at the door.

"Rachel." Noah looks relieved when he sees her. "It's not what you think. I didn't just walk out…"

"I was listening. You should probably come in."

* * *

><p>Puck follows Rachel into her bedroom and stands in the middle of the room as she closes the door. She moves to sit on the end of her bed, but still doesn't say anything.<p>

"You have to know that I never wanted to hurt you. I never wanted you to wake up alone and scared, thinking you had to do this on your own. I was just going to run to the bakery and be back before you even woke up. I was going to tell you how much I love you and how excited I am about this baby, and we were going to spend the day planning the rest of our lives."

Rachel has been completely silent through his speech, but she looks up at him with eyes that have clearly spent the morning crying.

"So tell me now."

Puck sits next to her on the bed and holds her hand as he tells her everything he's been thinking since he woke up this morning.

* * *

><p>Santana should not be listening outside of Rachel's door. She tried not to, but she couldn't help herself.<p>

It's pretty quiet but then she hears Rachel's voice.

"You can come in now, Santana."

She opens the door immediately to find them sitting on Rachel's bed holding hands.

"We're having a baby!" Rachel says excitedly.

This is the kind of response she was looking for yesterday.

* * *

><p>Rachel has a ring on her finger and a new address before she can blink. Nothing can bring her down.<p>

* * *

><p>Puck's running a bit late to meet Rachel at the baby store. He texted to tell her he'd be late, he's not taking chances.<p>

* * *

><p>Rachel is looking at a beautiful crib when she sees Adam out of the corner of her eye. She knows that Noah is running late, but she still glances around the store for him. She thinks about ducking out of the store and texting Noah to meet her somewhere else, but it's too late. Adam has already spotted her.<p>

"Rachel!" He calls out, as he rounds the corner of the aisle.

"Adam." She says coolly. His eyes take in the fullness of her belly, and Rachel moves her hand to rest there, protecting her son from his eyes.

"It looks like congratulations are in order." He says.

He's so smug and snide. She can't believe she spent so many years married to this man. She feels crawly just standing in the same store as him.

"Thank you." She will take the high road. Adam will not get the better of her.

"It didn't take you long, did it? You always were desperate." Her resolve is barely a minute old and she's ready to break it, but then she feels Noah's arm wrap around her waist.

"Longer than it took you." He says, leveling Adam with a glare. "But you always were a sleazebag."

"And you were always pathetically in love with her. Just waiting for a chance with her. It's just too bad she had to lower her standards so far to actually consider being with you."

Rachel knows that Noah is prepared to fight this battle for her, but it suddenly dawns on her that if she doesn't put Adam in his place, he'll always have a hold over her. She needs to be through with him.

The truth is that being with Noah has made her wonder why she ever thought Adam would ever be the only person to love her. The only thing she can come up with is that he's manipulative son of a bitch.

"I was desperate. Desperate for you to love me, but you were too busy fucking every chorus girl who spread their legs for you. The only person I lowered my standards for was you, Adam. I am so much better off with Noah."

And with that she turns on her heel and leaves the store, dragging Noah with her, and leaving a stunned Adam in their week.

"That was so badass, babe."

* * *

><p>Santana has been in the hospital waiting room for hours before Puck comes out to tell her that he and Rachel have a son.<p>

As soon as Rachel is cleaned up and settled back in her room, Santana goes in to see her best friend and the new baby.

"Santana, we'd like you to meet Eli Noah Puckerman." Santana looks at the bundle in Rachel's arms and thinks he's the cutest baby she's ever seen.

Rachel's hair is a disgusting mess, she looks exhausted, and Santana doesn't think she's ever looked happier. This is a far cry from the girl that showed up on her doorstep over two years ago. Santana would like to take all the credit for how happy Rachel is, but Santana knows that no matter how many strings she pulled, Rachel is only this happy because of Puck, and now Eli.

She'll let them have this one.

But if she doesn't get to hold that baby soon, ain't no one gonna be happy.


End file.
